Tagged as NSFW because triggering topics.
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How do we know that when we put animals down it won’t hurt them? Like how can we be sure animals aren’t in pain if they can’t speak?
Mainly asking because I saw a 2 sentence horror story saying they can and now I’m irrationally worried. I could never imagine hurting my kitty ever and really just worried about the hypothetical.
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It’s like getting put out for surgery but with more of the drugs than what are safe. They just go to sleep and unconsciously od and don’t wake up. Very painless.
the processes are engineered ot be as painless as possible.
for most approved procedures they are put ot sleep and effectively OD on the drugs used and die in their sleep by having their hearts stop.
Euthanising an animal is a two-stage process. First they get a shot that makes them fall fast, fast asleep. And once they actually are in a very, very deep sleep, they get the second drug that stops their heart and brain function. For all intents and purposes, they die peacefully in their sleep.
Speaking from experience of having to put down my 7 month old kitten and holding him while it was happening; it’s painless and they don’t feel a thing. First dose to put to deep sleep and second to lay them to rest while they can’t feel what’s going on. Only thing that would cause pain is putting the catheters in. It’s a better alternative than letting them suffer the rest of their days in pain
In some cases we know from trying it on humans. The most common compounds used to put animals down are barbiturates, which are also used as sleeping medicine. In higher doses they lead to a loss of consciousness and loss of breathing. Barbiturates are also used to kill humans, as a lethal injection for the death penalty or assisted suicide. Another chemical used for this is potassium-chloride, which induces hyperkalemia (hyper meaning high, kalium standing for potassium, and – emia meaning presence in blood), which prevents muscles from contracting, including the heart. Aside from euthanasia this is also used to stop a patient’s breathing and heartbeat if surgery requires this.
Whilst those two methods basically put the patient to sleep without them ever waking up again, there are other methods considered painless where the patient stays consious, like shooting, snapping the neck, decapitation, or gassing. Those methods aren’t used for pets though. The first 3 are often used for lifestock intended for consumption, as there are no chemicals involved that could ruin the meat. Shooting is also the preferred option for injured wildlife that could still injure someone. Gassing is often used to kill large groups of animals, especially when disease is involved. The downsides to all these 4 methods is that while painfree the animal might still sense that something is wrong and be scared.
Sorry if that was long and rather technical
For whatever it’s worth, we had to let our dog go. They came to our house and gave him a shot that put him to sleep. It was exactly like when he was tired and sleepy. A few minutes later another shot was administered and he left us. He didn’t seem to notice the 2nd shot at all. He literally lay down and went to sleep and never woke up. He died in my arms and it was pretty traumatic for me personally, but I’m confident that he had no discomfort whatsoever and passed more peacefully than most humans do since most cultures don’t allow for the same kind of compassionate transition for people.
We know it works because we use the same medications that we use on humans for surgeries. We just use more than the “safe dose” to first put the animal in a medical coma. Next a dose of a medication is given to stop the heart. Again, we know it works because it’s been tested at various levels to know what is “safe” (LD50, LD95, LD100), it’s just reverse engineering basically.
Hopefully this isn’t something you have to deal with anytime soon, but if you do, talk to your vet. If they’re a good one, they should walk you through exactly what will be going on.
My two fur babies…when it was time…we just knew…they knew too. It was obvious…. The process was peaceful and the doctor and nurse was respectful and clear. Honestly, it was such a peaceful process I wouldnt mind going to through that as a human when it’s my time.
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